Twilight Revival: Twilight Revival

There are plenty of young bands drawing inspiration from Wilco these days, but few of the Tweedyphiles out there are doing it with as much verve and songwriting skill as Chicago’s Twilight Revival. By dipping into the rich musical palette of 1980s college rock, the foursome add an enticing dimension to today’s Americana sound on their confident debut EP. Bright, shimmering leads guitar fills shed some welcome light on the more downbeat numbers, first on the dark, ambling shuffle of “Intelligence Man”, and then on “Drive-By”, while “Killers” is a Rickenbacker away from a dead-on Paisley Underground homage. Better yet, the first two thirds of “Dark as Sin” draws inspiration from Reckoning-era R.E.M. before throwing a curveball with its rousing, Replacements-style coda, and the gorgeous “So Far Away” embraces its own self-loathing, climaxing in a sumptuous solo run, fading out as twilight gives way to darkness.